Fae Technology focuses on AI, aerospace and defence to return to growth

(Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - Fae Technology is betting on AI, Defence, aerospace and innovation to return to growth so as to surpass, according to analysts, the 90 million turnover threshold in 2026. Explaining this, in an interview with Radiocor, is Gianmarco Lanza, CEO of the family-owned company listed on the Egm from 2022 and specialised in offering services and solutions in the field of electronics and innovation, with a particular focus on the New Space Economy. The manager, at the helm of the group since 2010, has transformed it in little more than a decade from a small manufacturing company in the Bergamo area to a company "capable of conveying electronic solutions for different markets". So much so that today, among its customers, there are also major European space companies.

In order to think about future development, however, one must start from the results of the year just ended, which, as Lanza explains, 'show a certain solidity', especially 'on the profit and loss account', and 'a discrete profit, percentage-wise higher than expected'. But at the same time, they show signs of a slowdown. In fact, Fae Technology, according to preliminary figures, closed 2025 with revenues down 7.3% to EUR 66.5 million (from EUR 71.8 million last year) and a value of production dropped to EUR 67.6 million (compared to EUR 75.5 million at 31 December 2024). Ebitda on the other hand stood at EUR 5.8 million (-28.4%), with a margin at 8.6% (from 10.8% in 2024). What weighed, the CEO explained, was the 'rather significant contraction of some segments' in the first half of the year, such as the electrification of transport (led by the ultrafast charging for electric cars). The latter 'remains an important market for us, but definitely more diluted than before', says Lanza.

In parallel, however, Fae Technology managed to "contain the retracement thanks" to progress in "several new sectors". In particular, 'we have significantly increased our positioning in telecommunications and Defence,' says the CEO. In the past, "the sector weighed less than 10%, but today it has come to represent 15% of the group's revenues and we imagine that it could rise above 20%" in a few years. This is where, in addition to the "undeniable opportunities" offered by AI (both on the product and operational levels), the boost that, according to the investment bank Alantra, could lead Fae Technology to 92 million in revenues in 2026 comes from. "At the moment we see ourselves quite aligned to this research," explains Lanza. Instead, "on a broader time horizon", such as 2030, "the hope is to exceed it, perhaps reaching triple digits".

Another important impetus for the group's growth strategy will come from investments, which for the current year 'we expect to be close to 10 per cent of revenues,' says the CEO, 'with a significant portion of R&D'. In particular, Fae will focus on the development of software and 'proprietary technologies for the computing segment'. Thanks to the collaboration announced in March with Qualcomm Technologies, a global leader in edge AI, the Bergamo-based company is in fact 'developing modules intended for the edge computing market in the high end'. These are powerful infrastructures, similar to micro datacentres, designed to handle large workloads in real time, such as complex video analysis or AI tasks. Moreover, this, like Electronics and Aerospace, is a field that offers 'M&A opportunities that suit our structure very well', explains Lanza. Fresh from its recent acquisition of the aerospace company Kyser Italia (now Kyser Space), Fae Technology continues to look around for "small companies that are vertical excellences to which we can give a sounding board". In fact, the CEO explains that 'our integration model' aims not only at 'a synergy of costs, but a true multiplication of value'.

On the other hand, it is also 'from the expansion of internal competencies' that one of the group's main objectives passes, namely the strengthening 'of our international presence'. Although Italia still accounts for 80% of revenues, 'we have recently opened up to the Spanish market with a very interesting operation of synergy with a player in the Electronics division'. Moreover, in this sector, Fae Technology is already active in North America and has 'a business start-up in Germany', although it is theEuropean space agencies that account for the largest share of its foreign revenues (15%).